The lower house of the Kazakh parliament unilaterally voted on Wednesday to grant President Nursultan Nazarbayev the title of "Leader of the Nation" and give him a wide range of privileges after the expiration of his presidential term.
If approved by the upper house, Nazarbayev will enjoy life-long immunity from prosecution, with the falsification of his biography to be considered a criminal offence.
Under the amendments to the law, Nazarbayev "cannot be detained, arrested...be brought to trial on criminal or administrative charges for his activities committed while performing his presidential duties, and... related to the performance of his status of the first Kazakh president," lawmaker Rozakul Khalmuratov said.
The amendments also allow Nazarbayev to influence state policies concerning state structure and security, as well as domestic and foreign policies, after he leaves office.
Kazakh lawmakers also proposed creating a museum dedicated to the first Kazakh president and building a monument to Nazarbayev in the republic's capital, Astana.
Nazarbayev has ruled the Central Asian state for almost 21 years, as first secretary of the Kazakh Communist Party from 1989, and since the breakup of the Soviet Union as president of Kazakhstan.
In 2008, Kazakh lawmakers requested that Astana be renamed Nursultan in the first president's honor but Nazarbayev rejected the motion.
RIA Novosti
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